Drug and Crime Prevention

"Prevalence and Implementation Fidelity of Research-Based Prevention Programs in Public Schools"

A new study of school-based prevention programs focused on crime and substance abuse found that while schools implemented a large number of such programs during the 2004–05 school year, fewer than 10 percent used programs supported by research evidence.

In addition, the study commissioned by the U.S. Department of Education found that less than half of schools using research-based prevention programs met minimum standards for fidelity of implementation.

Published last month, the study looks at 300 programs that were found on existing lists of "promising" or "effective" prevention programs.

Based on those findings, the authors estimate that only about 3.5 percent of school-based prevention programs are both research-based and well-implemented.

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